The Book Report - celebrating the great reads from old favorites to the best hot new writers. I mostly read fantasy, but let's face it--I love to read every genre and I only review what I love!

Friday, April 13, 2012

Darkness Rising, Ross M Kitson

This week I am reviewing Darkness Rising, which is written by British fantasy author Ross M Kitson. This is a tale that has all the elements of a true classic. The plot moves along in unexpected ways, and the characters are compelling and draw you in. You find yourself turning the pages and reading, even when you should be putting it down and *cough* working.

And now for our story!

Born with strange silver-grey eyes, Emelia is trapped in
servitude to uncaring and haughty masters. Technically she is a ‘hired servant’
and not a slave, but the family who ‘employs’ her and others like her own her,
body and soul.It is a life that is harsh and unforgiving to
a girl hears voices that counsel rebellion and who frequently crosses the line
and forgets her place through no fault of her own. Even so, she has friends and loved ones within
the servant community, and even a wistful romantic interest. Because of her eyes, she is called ‘Star-Eyed’, and it is suspected that
one of her ancestors was actually a ‘Subaquan’ or a merman. Events happen to
Emelia and she finds herself caught up in them, unable to control them or to
avoid the punishments that surely follow.

The family that employs her, the Ebon-Farrs are members of an
elite and highly-placed nobility with many important connections. They are also
possessed of an item, a Crystal that the Arch-mage, Inkas-Tarr desires and
plans to steal. Inkas also desires to possess Emelia, and he makes a bargain with
the Ebon-Farrs to purchase her. Arch-mage Inkas is the highest ranking
Elemental master and he sees something in her that he wishes to have at his
enclave to study.

Before that can happen, she inadvertently runs afoul of
Uthor Ebon-Farr, the arrogant son of the house, and strange powers emerge
within her, but she is unaware of what has happened, only that strange things
are happening to her, and that she is punished severely for the events that she
had no control over.

On the night that she makes her escape from her masters,
Emelia meets two men, Hunor and Jem, who are attempting to steal the very
crystal that Arch-mage Inkas has also sent a thief after. Things begin to
really go awry, but it turns out that Emelia is a Wild Mage, and is the
antitheses of the Elemental Mages.

It turns out that the crystal is actually a dangerous and
powerful magical artifact, one of the Prisms of Power - ancient artifacts made
by a long dead race containing terrifying magic.

Once she is embroiled with Hunor and Jem, she embarks upon
an epic adventure to find the Prisms. The Prisms are necessary to defeat the
lord of the ghasts, the undead mages who are unequivocally evil.No wishy-washy maybe-they-are evil here!!!The Lord of the Ghasts is Evil. Emelia holds the key to their
location but the Wild-magic comes at a dire cost...that of her mind.

Kitson has created a world that is fully fleshed in both its
history and its social structure, and built a system of magic that is logical
and is fully believable.The details are
slipped into the story in such a way that the reader does not get bored.I was able to fully picture the world that
Kitson describes, and found myself immersed in the lives of Emelia, Hunor and
Jem. I didn't want the book to end!

I am SO looking forward to the next step in their adventures! Ross M Kitson, please write faster!